Our Story
The short version. The longer one's worth a glass of wine.
How it started
On paper, it was perfect. Dim, romantic lighting. An atmospheric haze. The unmistakable je ne sais quoi of spilled well drinks underfoot.
This was Scorpions Bar & Grill, UNH's finest dive. Somewhere through the smoke of cheap vodka and questionable decisions, Kayli walked in wearing a white top that practically glowed. An actual halo, in a room that hadn't seen natural light since the Jets won the Super Bowl.
Chris leaned over to his friend, said exactly what he was thinking, walked across the sticky floor, and introduced himself. Durham, New Hampshire. The rest, as they say, is history.
How it's going
Settled into East Boston. Kayli made it through PA school, another of those long hurdles you only really clear together, and we've been enjoying the slower stretch since.
Most nights, dinner is whatever Kayli has put together, the kind of meal you'd pay for in the North End. Every blue moon, Chris steps in and cooks just to prove he still can.
The rest is the good stuff: family in New Hampshire and Ipswich, friends scattered between the city and back home, and as many weekends with all of them as we can fit in.
How he asked
As far as Kayli knew, it was a Thursday-night concert at the Crane Estate. She had just survived another long day of PA school, and we were, predictably, running late. Chris spent the drive up Route 1 white-knuckling the steering wheel and sweating through his shirt, because there were a few dozen people already waiting for us on a lawn.
When we got there, Kayli, by some grace of timing, needed a bathroom. That was the in. Our man on the inside (actor by trade, accomplice by request) met us at the door, pointed her toward the restroom, and then, casual as anything, mentioned the roof of the castle was open and worth a look while we were there. She turned the corner up top. She froze. The concert kicked off below us, and Chris got down on one knee. She said yes.
When we walked down to the lawn, friends and family were standing there waiting, a surprise on top of the surprise, ready to take it all in with us. And just like that.
What's next
Back to where it all started. The corner of New Hampshire we love most, the people who've been with us through every chapter of it, and a jazz club in Portsmouth that's about to host the best party we've ever thrown.
Full circle. June 5, 2027.
